Several systems are known for detecting the presence of a driver and passengers in a vehicle. Such a system may for example detect if a specific seat is occupied, and provide a seat belt warning if no seat belt is used in the occupied seat. There are also may different types of driver monitoring systems, for example for detecting driver drowsiness, if the driver is incapacitated or ill, and also to for aiding the driver by directing the attention of the driver to relevant events. However, with the increasing number of safety functions in a vehicle, it is desirable to be able to determine both the presence and the location of many types of objects in a vehicle, other than just the driver and passengers.
It is furthermore desirable to not only detect but to possibly also identify objects in the car that is not part of the car interior as such. For example, persons, animals, or bags and other identifiable objects that may be of interest from a security point of view. The detection of objects can be used to determine whether to deploy airbags or not, which airbags or other safety features to deploy in case of an accident, or to warn if objects are a potential hazard in case of a collision, such as bags and other objects which are placed incorrectly. The object detection system can also be used for detecting persons thereby being part of a driver monitoring system, and also helping to identify not only the driver but also all passengers and their absolute position in the car. Finally, an object detection system may advantageously be used to warn an operator of the vehicle in case the doors are locked and the car is to be abandoned, while a person or animal which may have been forgotten are still in the car, which may be dangerous on hot, sunny days.
Accordingly, it is desirable to provide an improved system for object detection and identification in the interior of a vehicle.